Toyota Yaris (2020) Review

October 2019

2020 Toyota Yaris revealed

Due for launch during the second half of 2020, the new Yaris will strengthen its position as Toyota’s best-selling model in Europe, benefiting from significant advances in design and engineering.

The new Yaris is the first model to be built on the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) GA-B modular platform for small cars. This is the foundation for radically improved dynamic performance, safety and design freedom of the kind already witnessed in other TNGA-based Toyota models, such as the new Corolla, C-HR and RAV4.

In every aspect, it responds directly to the needs and preferences of today’s compact car customers: sharp styling, great manoeuvrability, excellent cost-of-ownership, comfort, quality and the clever application of new technologies, including multimedia functions and a new hybrid powertrain.

Yaris was the first car in its class to offer customers the choice of self-charging hybrid power; now it builds on that reputation with a new 1.5-litre hybrid system, featuring a new three-cylinder 1.5-litre petrol engine that delivers even greater efficiency – low CO2 emissions, improved fuel economy and, as a full hybrid, the ability to run on electric power alone.

Details of the UK model range, technical and equipment specifications and prices will be announced in 2020, nearer the on-sale date.

January 2020

Toyota GR Yaris announced

Positioned at the top of the new Yaris range, the GR Yaris is a unique model that benefits from the design and engineering skills of Toyota Gazoo Racing and Tommi Mäkinen Racing, Toyota’s partner in the WRC. As well as serving as the official homologation model for development of the next Yaris WRC car, it also has all the attributes required for owners looking to compete in local rally competitions. Scheduled for launch in the second half of 2020, it will follow the GR Supra as Toyota’s second global GR model.

Every aspect of the car has a performance focus: an all-new platform and engine, new suspension, lightweight construction, aerodynamic styling and a new GR-Four permanent all-wheel drive system. With high power and low weight, it has all the credentials for competition success, and for delivering exhilarating performance as a super-hot hatch for the road.

The WRC-skilled team of designers and engineers at Tommi Mäkinen Racing focused on perfecting the aerodynamics, weight distribution and light weight of the new car – the three qualities essential to achieving the best performance and drivability.

A lower roofline improved the car’s ability to cut through the air, while positioning the new 1.6 turbo engine further back towards the centre of the car and locating the battery in the boot helped produce a better chassis balance for improved handling, stability and responsiveness.

The three-door body shell is made from lightweight materials including carbon fibre polymer and aluminium, to deliver an impressive power-to-weight ratio, while the new platform allows for a wider rear track and new double wishbone rear suspension system. The team also devised reinforcements beneath the side members to ensure the suspension’s performance potential can be realised.

Although the new GR Yaris sits at the top of the all-new Yaris range, it has a unique design with a three-door body and a roof lowered by 91mm, creating a coupe silhouette. Frameless doors add to the coupe look. At the front the grille design and spoiler express the car’s authentic GR status, while at the rear the wide tread and muscular wings accommodate 18-inch alloy wheels.

The GR Yaris’s engine is an all-new, three-cylinder turbocharged unit that benefits from motorsport technologies to maximise performance, including multi-oil jet piston cooling, large-diameter exhaust valves and a part-machined intake port. Displacing 1618cc, it produces a maximum 261PS and 360Nm of torque.

Compact and lightweight, the DOHC 12-valve engine features a single-scroll ball-bearing turbo and is matched to a six-speed manual transmission, engineered to accommodate high torque levels.

Achieving a strong power-to-weight ratio was a key objective to help meet the GR Yaris’s performance targets. The body shell is constructed predominantly from lightweight materials, including a new carbon fibre polymer for the roof that can be compression moulded. Aluminium is used for the bonnet, doors and tailgate. As a result, the GR Yaris has the power of a C-segment performance hatch but the weight of a B-segment machine (kerb weight 1280kg). Its power-to-weight ratio of only 5.0 kg per bhp helps deliver 0-62mph acceleration in less than 5.5 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 143mph.

The GR Yaris’s performance is supported by a new GR-Four all-wheel drive system designed to optimise drive power to each wheel, while also being simple and lightweight. The distribution of torque between the front and rear axles is governed by a high-response coupling. As an option in the Circuit Pack (details below), two Torsen limited-slip differentials manage the split between the left and right-side wheels to give natural and direct car control.

The system uses slightly different gear ratios for the front and rear axles and allows for a theoretical range of front/rear torque balance from 100:0 (full front-wheel drive) to 0:100 (full rear-wheel drive). This flexibility gives a performance advantage over AWD on-demand systems that use twin-coupling or permanent AWD systems with a centre differential. The GR Four system is also considerably lighter in weight.

The driver can adjust four-wheel drive performance to suit their preference or the driving situation using a 4WD mode dial switch. In normal mode the base front/rear torque distribution is 60:40; in Sport mode the balance shifts to the rear, with 30:70 distribution to achieve a fun-to-drive quality on winding roads and circuits; and in Track mode the base setting is 50:50 for fast, competitive driving on circuits or special stages. In each mode, the torque balance will automatically adjust in response to the driver’s inputs, vehicle behaviour and road or track conditions.

The GR Yaris has a new, dedicated platform that combines the front end of Toyota’s GA-B platform – debuting in the all new Yaris model in 2020 – with the rear of the GA-C platform. This allows for a new suspension design and accommodation of the GR-Four all-wheel drive system, while also contributing to the car’s excellent stability and handling.

Where the standard new Yaris uses a torsion beam rear suspension, the GR Yaris has a double wishbone set-up, with every element optimised for performance. A MacPherson strut system is used at the front.

The performance braking system features large, 356mm grooved front discs with four-pot callipers, engineered to cope with rigorous demands of high-speed track and special stage driving with high-level heat capacity.

Customers can upgrade their GR Yaris with an optional Circuit Pack. This equips the car with a Torsen limited-slip differential on both the front and rear axle, performance-tuned suspension and 18-inch forged alloy wheels with Michelin Pilot Sport 4s 225/40R18 tyres.

GR YARIS TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

March 2020

Toyota GR Yaris priced from £29,995

UK customers will have the choice of two versions, GR Yaris and the GR Yaris Circuit Pack, with respective on-the-road prices of £29,995 and £33,495.

Specifications and further details will be announced later. Meanwhile, those keen to be among the first UK GR Yaris owners can sign up to Toyota’s “keep me informed” service for the new model, via their local Toyota centre or the toyota.co.uk website, prior to orders being accepted later in the year. First deliveries to customers are expected from November 2020.